Merritt Wins Fifth Straight; Earns WAC Player of the Year
4/30/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
This is the fifth consecutive tournament victory for Merritt who won the conference championship by 10 strokes and was the only golfer in the 45-man field to finish under-par. With the win, Merritt was named WAC Player of the Year and became the first
“To win five in a row is great,” said Merritt. “You don’t think about it while you’re playing. You look at it after you’re done one shot at a time, one tournament at a time and add them all up at the end of the year. If you have the low man continuously, you’re going to win it. That’s what happened.”
Merritt posted the second-best round of the day as he recorded a 71 (-1) in the third round en route to the individual championship. Merritt led the tournament in par-4 scoring (3.87, -4) and birdies (13) while tying for the event lead in par-5 scoring (4.50, -6) and eagles (1). Merritt’s 209 (-7) set the Boise State school record for an individual three-round conference championship score topping the 215 (-1) posted by John Baranco at the 2007 WAC Championships.
Merritt continues to lead the NCAA in tournament victories (7) and scoring average (69.25). He also owns the
The
Senior Matt Hastings closed out his Boise State career by earning second-team all-conference honors as he finished fifth at the championships with a 7-over 223.
John Baranco was the most consistent player throughout the tournament as he registered a 75 (+3) in each round en route to a 225 (+9) and a tie for eighth place. Baranco led the 45-man tournament field in birdies with 39 while ranking ninth in par-5 scoring (4.83, -2) and 10th in par-4 scoring (4.27, +8). This was the second top 10 finish of the season for Baranco, who led the Broncos in scoring at the 2007 WAC Championships with a 1-under 215, to finish seventh.
Robbie Richards tied for 31st with a 240 (+24). The Broncos used Richards’ 79 (+7) in the final round as the third counting score for
Kevin Tarango registered a 244 (+28) at the championships to tie for 35th place. The Broncos used his 79 (+7) in the second round as a qualifying score. Tarango concludes the season with a 76.88 scoring average over 14 rounds of play.
The NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Committee will select the NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championships participants Monday, May 5, at 4:00 p.m. (MT).
Results
WAC Championships
Cinnabar Hills Golf Club
Apr. 28-30
Top Teams 1.
Top Individuals 1. Troy Merritt,
Head Coach Kevin Burton
“We made some mistakes at the wrong time. (The first 8 holes) We were playing smart and not letting the course beat us. We were doing that for a long time. We got to a stretch of holes where we hit three or four balls in the hazard, made mistakes and they (
On Troy Merritt winning: “He played solid, patient golf. He hit a lot of great iron shots. With the wind, you have to a very good ball striker and that’s what he is. He proved why he is the best.”
Senior
“To win five in a row is great. You don’t think about it while you’re playing. You look at it after you’re done one shot at a time, one tournament at a time and add them all up at the end of the year. If you have the low man continuously, you’re going to win it. That’s what happened.”
“When I make a mistake, it doesn’t cost me very much. If I miss a green, I’ll miss it in a good spot where I can make an easy par. I don’t do that very much. I’ve eliminated mistakes, especially, this spring. I’ve had more birdies, less bogeys, and lower scores. Guys have to come get you when you make a lot of birdies and not many bogeys. That’s what I did. It’s just new-found confidence, I guess.”
“I learned how to play at this level last year. Last fall, I had a couple of wins. This spring, I won five out of six, including the last five.”
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